Chapter 26: The Scheme of Mi Zou (Part 2)

  "Hmm?" Upon hearing Zou Jia's words, Tao Qian's eyes sparkled with a sharp glint.

  Since the end of the Dong Zhuo's regime, various lords in the eastern China returned to their respective domains. The weaker ones defended themselves, while the stronger ones annexed neighboring counties to expand their power. However, the wars among the lords in eastern China were not a complete free-for-all, but rather two relatively loose alliances formed around Yuan Shao and his brother Yuan Shu to counter each other.

  In Hebei, Yuan Shao used the plan to destroy Guo to swallow Han Fu's Ji Province, greatly increasing his power. He also contacted Liu Biao in Jingzhou in the south, making him restrain Yuan Tuo in Huainan. Cao Cao was a good friend of Yuan Shao when he was young, and after becoming the governor of Yanzhou, he also relied on Yuan Shao.

  On the other hand, after Yuan Shu defeated Dong, he sent his subordinate Sun Jian to Jingzhou to unify the south. At the same time, Yuan Shu also formed an alliance with Gongsun Zan, who had a grudge against Yuan Shao, and formed a practical confrontation with Yuan Shao. Under this situation, Tao Qian's northern Xu state and Yan state were connected to Hebei, facing the joint threat of Yuan Shao and Cao Cao, so he decisively chose to surrender to Yuan Shu. Thus, the entire eastern region formed two loose alliances in opposition.

  Unfortunately, when Yuan Shu marched south to Jingzhou, the brave and famous Sun Jian was defeated at Xiangyang and died. Public Sun Quan also suffered a great defeat at Jieqiao, which greatly weakened Yuan Shu's side. In comparison, Tao Qian was relatively lucky and did not suffer heavy losses. Just as Tao Qian was preparing to abandon Yuan Shu and ally with Yuan Shao and Cao Cao, the incident of Cao Song's assassination occurred, completely disrupting his original plan.

  Cao Jun came to attack, and Tao Qian could only reluctantly fight back, and once again leaned towards Gongsun Zan. At this time, Tao Qian did not dare to invite Yuan Shu again, but after Yuan Shu's defeat in Jingzhou, he was stationed in Huainan Shouchun, and his intention to advance eastward was self-evident. Tao Qian did not dare to invite the wolf into his home at this time, so he could only lean towards Gongsun Zan, whom he had known since he was the governor of Youzhou.

  Mi Heng also saw this point, so he suggested that Tao Qian seek help from Gongsun Zan and did not mention Yuan Shu. Now Mi Heng suggests seeking help from Gongsun Zan and Kong Rong, but there are two layers of intention here. Firstly, Gongsun Zan is good at fighting, although he was defeated by Yuan Shao, but in Mi Heng's view, with Gongsun Zan's Youyan Iron Cavalry, it would be more than enough to deal with Cao Cao, who only had infantry, and with the help of his own Xu State Danyang soldiers. This move is a hard one. As for Kong Rong's route, in fact, there won't be too many troops, what's needed is Kong Rong's reputation. Kong Rong is a descendant of Confucius, a great Confucian scholar respected by the world, and he will persuade Cao Cao to retreat his troops. Cao Cao will definitely give Kong Rong some face, this move is soft. With both hard and soft approaches, it is indeed a good strategy to repel Cao's army.

  However, it is possible to defeat Cao's army, but saying that Cao Cao will die without a place to bury his body is a bit exaggerated. Nevertheless, Cao's forces are strong, and Zuo Ci's words also have the intention of boosting morale. Tao Qian naturally understands this.

  As soon as this statement came out, the people in the hall, including Tao Qian and Cao Jiao, all smiled with joy. With this plan of Taishi Ci, it should not be difficult to retreat from Cao's army. However, among these smiling people, Chen Deng was not included. This number one scholar of Xuzhou was now frowning tightly. To say that Taishi Ci's plan is not bad, Kong Rong is good at inviting guests, but without the great army of Gongsun Zan, even if Kong Rong came, it would be useless. You should know that now, Tian Kai under Gongsun Zan is competing with Yuan Shao for Qingzhou, how could he spare troops to rescue Xuzhou at this critical moment?

  As for Cao Pi's plan, Chen Deng did not think it was right in his heart, but he knew the situation well and did not say anything, instead letting Cao Pi show off.

  On the other side, Tao Qian saw that no one spoke out in opposition, so he nodded and said: "Zi Zhong's plan is indeed a wonderful strategy. Since it should not be delayed, let Zi Zhong go to Beihai to invite Kong Wenju to come and assist; while Yuan Long goes to Qingzhou to seek help from Tian Kai. I believe that with Yuan Long's talent, he will definitely be able to bring Tian Kai here." When he finished speaking, Tao Qian glanced at Chen Deng with profound meaning in his eyes.

  When Chen Deng saw Tao Qian, he could only smile helplessly and secretly sighed: "The governor's vision and means are indeed good. If he were ten years younger, even if he couldn't be a master of one side, he could still guard the foundation of Xuzhou. Unfortunately..." He shook his head secretly and continued to think: "Forget it, after all, my Chen family has received a lot of kindness from him in these few years. This time, let's just repay the favor." Thinking of this, Chen Deng stood up firmly and replied: "Deng will not disappoint your order!"

  Tao Qian nodded and said: "The matter should not be delayed, Zi Zhong, Yuan Long, you two set off immediately!"

  The two responded in unison, and as they were about to leave, Chen Deng said: "My lord, the Cao army is powerful, it's best to defend firmly. If it can't be done, we can retreat to Tancheng to defend it."

  Upon hearing this, Tao Qian didn't pay much attention to it and simply waved his hand dismissively. Chen Deng saw this and his expression turned solemn. As he walked out of the great hall, he couldn't help but let out a quiet sigh, thinking to himself: "I hope our lord remembers my words, if we retreat to Dongjun, things will go badly."

  If Cao Cao and his strategists were to hear Chen Deng's words, they would surely appreciate them. The three most important and strongest cities in Xuzhou are Pengcheng, Duchang, and Xiaopei. Among them, Pengcheng is the easternmost, facing the Cao army head-on, and must be the vanguard. Although Duchang is no longer the capital of Xuzhou at this time, it has been the capital for more than 400 years and is absolutely the strongest among the three cities. As for Xiaopei, after Tao Qian's several years of governance in Xuzhou, it has become the most prosperous place in Xuzhou. Chen Deng suggested that if Pengcheng cannot be defended, Tao Qian should retreat to Duchang instead of retreating to Xiaopei. Firstly, he wanted to borrow the strong city walls of Duchang to defend against the Cao army, and secondly, he wanted to lure the Cao army to fight in Duchang, abandoning Duchang to protect the most prosperous Xiaopei.

  After Deng Ai and Chen Gong left, Tao Qian finally felt at ease. He waved his hand to the remaining Cao Jue and others, saying: "Alright, everyone is tired too, let's all go back and rest."

  When they saw Tao Qian's appearance, everyone naturally wouldn't stay and left one after another.

  ……

  Here is the translation:

  On this side, Tao Qian was preparing to request reinforcements to deal with Cao Cao. On the other side, in Cao Cao's large tent, a group of high-ranking generals and strategists gathered together to discuss plans for taking Xuzhou.

  In Cao Jun's large tent, Cao Cao, seated in the main seat, kept tapping on the desk in front of him and regretfully said: "It's a pity that big wind saved Tao Qian's life, so my army couldn't conquer Xuzhou in one battle!"

  Xiahou Dun and Xiahou Yuan chimed in unison, especially Xiahou Dun, who almost killed Cao Pi. At that time, the Xuzhou army was like a dragon without a head. He sighed and said: "General, what you said is very true! That gust of wind came at an inopportune moment!"

  Lei Jin replied without concern: "My lord, heaven has sent a divine wind to aid Xuzhou, but I fear it may be unfavorable for our army."

  Lei Jin's words also represented the views of many military officers, and in fact, people in the Han Dynasty were extremely taboo about prophecies. The heyday of prophecies was during the Western Han Dynasty. Although it was already the late Han Dynasty, the classical literature movement was prevailing, which weakened the influence of prophecies belonging to the modern script school. However, this was not easy to eliminate, especially the strange wind that morning, which made many military generals and soldiers uneasy.